Vodafone to Cut 500 Jobs in Germany

FRANKFURT: Vodafone will cut 500 jobs in Germany, the company said, as the group adjusts to harsher competition and lower fees in Europe's largest economy.

"We have started a two-year program," a spokesman said, confirming reports in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and Rheinische Post.

The company aims to shift some operations to Romania and India, as well as considerably reduce starting salaries. Areas like network technology and customer service will be affected.

Vodafone is suffering because of low price offers for smartphones from Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile unit and a regulatory ruling that lowers the fees mobile operators can charge for calls coming from other networks.